This post originally appeared on the blog, Law and Political Economy, and is republished here by permission. Economists tend to characterize the scope of regulation as a simple matter of expanding or contracting state power. But a political economy perspective emphasizes that social relations abhor a power vacuum. When state authority contracts, private parties fill […]
Read moreDespite a mostly solid run of job growth, 2017 ends pretty much where it began — with a two-speed economy where wage growth is funneling to one end while the other lags behind. Friday’s nonfarm payrolls report brought with it news all too familiar to the post-crisis economy. The 228,000 jobs created formed a solid […]
Read moreUnited Natural Foods, a major Whole Foods supplier, revised its full year revenue guidance after seeing record sales and an unexpected surge in demand last quarter — another sign that Amazon‘s Whole Foods acquisition is leading to increased sales at the grocery chain. During the earnings call on Thursday, United Natural Foods CEO Steve Spinner […]
Read moreNo, you are not imagining things. Everyone is talking about bitcoin, even your mom. With a price approaching $20,000 a coin this week, it’s not hard to understand why. The digital currency started out the year below $1,000. A mere curiosity until recently, Bitcoin is about to get a big dose of legitimacy, something that […]
Read moreAs long as it holds above $13,000, bitcoin has a chance of spiking to $45,000 later next year, a technical analyst told CNBC on Friday. Bitcoin was under continued pressure Friday, falling nearly 18 percent at one point. But the digital currency had skyrocketed the day before, reaching above $19,000, before plunging. Walter Zimmermann, an […]
Read moreOne of Wall Street’s top strategists and a longtime bitcoin fan has unveiled his top stock ideas to clients as a way to play the cryptocurrency craze. Fundstrat’s Tom Lee was the first major strategist to issue an official price target on bitcoin and now becomes the first to give clients direct bitcoin equity plays. […]
Read moreMicrosoft could reach a $1 trillion market cap by 2020 or sooner, analysts from Evercore ISI said in a Thursday note. The company’s current market cap is around $650 billion. In coming up with their calculations, the analysts — who also raised their target price from $93 to $106 — pointed to the growth of […]
Read moreThe good times are not over yet for U.S. stocks, according to John Stoltzfus, chief investment strategist at Oppenheimer Asset Management. On Friday, Stoltzfus forecast the S&P 500 to reach 3,000 next year, making him the biggest bull on Wall Street. “Going forward we expect many of the same thematics from 2017 to apply in […]
Read moreBitcoin‘s wild spikes this week are unlikely to be repeated next week or by other cryptocurrencies, according to a bitcoin security expert. “The first time a new thing is launched, then it becomes extremely important for the reaction of the market. Next time, so let’s say the next future being launched, [you’ll] probably not see […]
Read moreJPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon seems to be softening his tone on cryptocurrencies a bit but still remains doubtful the surge in bitcoin itself is sustainable. “Look, everyone has a personal opinion about bitcoin. I remain highly skeptical of it,” Dimon told CNBC’s Wilfred Frost on Friday. “But as I’ve said previously, I’m open-minded to […]
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